Gutter scraper



March 1, 1938. E. c. FERRIS 2,109,635

GUTTER SCRAPER March 25. 193s Ig fz l i ff? ff? Patented Mar. 1, 1938 UNITED STATES GUTTER SCRAPER Eugene C. Ferris, Harvard, Ill., assignor to Starline Inc., Harvard, Ill., a corporation ofv Illinois Application March 25, 1936A, Serial No. 70,727

3 Claims.

An object of this invention is to provide an efficient and inexpensive scraper for use in cleaning the side walls of gutters of cattle barns and the like. These gutters are located at the rear of the cow stalls and have flat bottoms and parallel vertical walls. It is comparatively easy toI clean the bottom of the gutter with a shovel, but it is not so easy to clean the side walls of the gutter. The result is that a hard deposit accumulates on the side walls of the gutter which is difficult to remove. The statutory requirements are making it more and more imperative tomore thoroughly clean all parts of the cow stall. This invention is provided toovercome this difliculty.

This and other objects, as will hereinafter appear, are accomplished by this invention which is fully described in the following specification and shown in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of a gutter shown partially in cross section with one embodiment of the gutter scraper placed therein in operative position;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged horizontal section on the broken line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of a modified form of scraper;

Fig. 4 is a section on the broken line 4-4 of Fig. 3

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of still another modii'led form of the scraper;

Fig. 6 is a section on the broken line 6--6 of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a modified form of scraper.

The embodiment shown in Fig. 1 comprises a cow stall having a floor I which may be divided up into cow stalls by means of partitions Il, the top of which is shown broken away. At the rear of the coW stalls is a runway I2, preferably at a lower level than that of the cow stalls, and separated therefrom by a gutter I3 which has a bottom |3a and side walls |3b, |30. 'I'hese side Walls are preferably vertical, parallel and equidistantly spaced from each other. 'I'he stall runway and gutter are preferably made of concrete.

As previously stated, it is comparatively easy to clean the bottom of the gutter but much of the material in the gutter clings to the side walls and is removed therefrom with difculty. This material in time becomes very hard. 'I'he three forms of Scrapers herein illustrated are adapted to remove it.

'I'he scraper shown in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises a central member I4 to which is secured a socket or the like I as by riveting, spot-welding, brazing, or the like, and a handle I6 is secured therein which is preferably placed at an angle to the f central member. Lateral extending members Il 5 I3 are made of spring material and are adjustably secured tothe central member as by means of bolts I9 which extend through holes in one of these members and through horizontal slots in the other, and are secured thereto by means 10 of wing nuts 2| or the like. These laterally extending members are preferably provided with spaced slots 22 at their outer edges so as to provide a series of scraper fingers 23. The members I1, I8 are also preferably made as high as the 15 higher vertical walls I3c so that either side of the scraper may be used to scrape either wall.

In use the scraper is placed in the gutter to be cleaned and the side scrapers adjusted by means of wing nuts 2| so as tosubstantially 20 t in the gutter as illustrated, the scraper resting upon the bottom of the gutter. The operator then grasps the handle I6 and movesl the scraper forward and backward thereby breaking loose from the sides of the gutter any accumulated 25 matter and thoroughly cleaning these sides. This will usually be done after the gutter has rst been roughly cleaned by means of a fork or shovel.

In Figs. 3 and 4 is shown a modified form of 30 the scraper in which the central portion 4 is similarly provided with a handle H6, and has laterally extending members ||'I, ||8 which are provided with rivets ||9 which are loosely fitted at each side in slots |20. These lateral members are provided with upstruck ears Illa, ||8a having openings through which pass rods |24. A compression spring |25 surrounds each of these rods and serves toI press the lateral members outwardly. 'I'hus as this scraper is moved backward 40 and forward in the gutter, its laterally extending fingers |23 are forced into contact with the sides of the gutter and serve to scrape free any material deposited thereupon. y

In Figs. 5 and 6 is shown still another modifi- 45 cation of the invention having a central member 2 I4 provided with a handle 2|6 and to which are hingedly mounted lateral members 2|'|, 2|8. These are preferably provided at their side edges with lingers 223. The member 2|4 has a U- shaped member 226 secured thereto as by means of rivets or spot-welding. Rods 221, 228 pass through openings in opposite sides of the member 226 so as to be guided therein and are hingedly connected at their outer ends to ears 229, 230 55 respectively Which are carried by the lateral members 2l1, 2I8. The rod 221 is threaded and has a nut 23| screwed therein so as to serve as a stop to limit the outward movement of its member 2I1. A spring 232 presses against the nut 23| and urges it toward its outermost position in ccntact with the member 22B. The rod 228 is similarly provided with a nut and spring.

Thus it will be seen in the embodiment shown in Figs. 5 and 6 the scraper members are hingedly and yieldingly mounted on the central member, and are provided with means for adjusting the scraper members to different widths of the gutters.

In Fig. 7 is shown a modified form of scraper having a body 3I4 and a handle 3I6. Scraper disks 3 I 1 are each provided with shafts 3 I 8 which are journaled in suitable bearings in the body and are slidable endwise therein, and have scraper wires or fingers 3I9 adapted to engage the side Walls of the gutter as shown. A spring 320 ts over reduced portions of the shafts and bears at each end on each shaft and is adapted to yieldingly press the brushes outwardly into Contact with the gutter side walls. Thus, as the scraper is moved back and forth, the brushes slide or rotate over the side walls of the gutter and serve to clean these Walls of materials deposited thereon.

In some cases, the gutter, instead of being level onY the bottom, slopes toward the stall floor, as shown in Fig. '1. The scrapers adapt themselves to this condition.

While I have shown and described but aY few embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that it is capable of many modifications. Changes, therefore, in the construction and arrangement may be made Which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as disclosed in the appended claims.

I claim 1. A gutter scraping device comprising a central body member of a less length than the space between the gutter walls, means supporting said body in scraping contact with the bottom of said gutter and at substantially right angles to the side Walls thereof, including a rigid, elongated handle, and relatively rigid side wall scraping elements adjustably mounted on opposite sides of said central member to engage the opposite side walls of said gutter. 2. A scraping device for the spaced side walls of an open top gutter comprising a substantially rigid central member having a non-yielding scraping edge adapted to rest upon the bottom of the gutter, an elongated handle rigidly secured to said central member at an acute angle so as to extend abcve'the gutter walls While supporting vthe central member in a substantially vertical plane between said Walls, and said central member having a relatively yieldable side Wall scraping portion adjustably connected to said central member to extend in substantially the plane of the supporting edge thereof and engage the opposite'side Walls of the gutter.

3. A gutter scraping tool comprising an elongated rigid handle, a substantially rectangular center plate having an elongated scraping edge, said plate being rigidly connected to one end of said handle so as to extend at an acute angle thereto when supported thereby on said edge in a vertical position on the bottom of said gutter, and other scraper plates adjustably connected to opposite side edge portions of said center plate, said other scraper plates having relatively yieldable outer scraping edge portions supported in substantially the plane of the lower supporting edge portion of said central plate and in engagement with the opposite side Walls of the gutter.y

EUGENE C. FERRIS. 

